Non-contact IC card and method of using the same

• US 5,220,158 A
• Filed: 09/19/1991
• Issued: 06/15/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Renesas Electronics Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Inventors: Takahira, Kenichi, Fujioka, Shuzo
• Primary Examiner(s): PITTS, HAROLD I
• Application Number:
  US07/762,364
• Time in Patent Office: 635 Days
• Field of Search: 235/437, 235/380, 235/492
• US Class Current: 235/492
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0705 the battery being connected to a power saving arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs

Abstract

A non-contact IC card includes an antenna by which data is sent and received without contact, first and second demodulators that demodulate signals received by the antenna, interrupt device interrupts a current flow for operating the first demodulator, a control device selects one of the first and second demodulators via the interrupt device when the second demodulator is selected, data processing device processes data demodulated by the demodulator selected by the control device, a modulator modulates signals from the data processing device and outputs them to the antenna, and a battery supplies power to the respective devices.

Claims

1. A non-contact IC card comprising:

antenna means by which data is sent and received without contact;

first and second demodulation means for demodulating signals received by said antenna means;

interrupt means for interrupting a current flow operating said first demodulation means;

control means for selecting one of said first and second demodulation means and for actuating said interrupt means to interrupt the current flow when said second demodulation means is selected by said control means;

data processing means for processing data demodulated by the demodulation means selected by said control means from said first and second demodulation means to produce a data signal;

modulation means for modulating the data signal produced by said data processing means and for outputting the modulated signal to said antenna means; and

a battery for supplying power to said first and second demodulation means, interrupt means, control means, data processing means, and modulation means.

2. A non-contact IC card as claimed in claim 1 wherein said first demodulation means has a fist threshold for detecting a normal request signal exceeding the fist threshold and said second demodulation means has a second threshold higher than said first threshold whereby said second demodulation means does not response to a normal request signal.

3. A non-contact IC card as claimed in claim 1 wherein said second demodulation means comprises of CMOS cicuits.

4. A non-contact IC card comprising:

data sending and receiving means or sending and receiving data without contact;

resetting means for detecting a reset signal received by the IC card without contact;

data processing means, connected to said data sending and receiving means, or processing data;

stopping means for stopping operation of said data sending and receiving means;

control means for actuating said stopping means to stop said data sending and receiving means and for actuating said stopping means to release stoppage of said data sending and receiving means when a reset signal is detected by said resetting means; and

a battery for supplying power to said resetting means, data processing means, stopping means, and control means.

5. A non-contact IC card as claimed in claim 4 wherein said resetting mean comprises of CMOS circuits.

6. A method of using non-contact IC cards having a normal mode in which operations are performed routinely and a sleep mode in which only reception of a starting signal returns the IC card to the normal mode comprising the steps of:

maintaining a non-contact IC card in a sleep mode until the card is issued; and

applying a starting signal to the card, changing the card from the sleep mode to a normal mode when the card is issued.